Promise You'll Come Back
by Residentfangirl1997
Summary: What if the explosion at the British Men of Letters' Headquarters was caused by the Brits and Sam and Jody were still inside? My take on the end of 12.22 Who Are We. Hurt!Sam Caring!Dean.
1. Chapter 1

Hi guys! I was watching the first part of the season finale and decided that this had to be written. Sorry the first chapter is so short, but I wanted to get it started. This is my first Supernatural fanfiction, so please leave a comment with some constructive criticism (or something nice)! Enjoy :)

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"You come back."

Those were Dean's last words to Sam before he went to fight the British Men of Letters. Sam had promised that he would, but now he's not so sure it's a promise he can keep.

Sam and Jody were standing in the Men of Letter's office, guns trained on Dr. Hess. Sam was trying to wrap his head around the information he just received. Lucifer couldn't be back. They had beaten him- twice. Sam didn't think he was strong enough to face him a third time. It had been years since he was in the cage, but the memories were always there. His skin being sliced off piece by piece. The smell of his own organs burning. His limbs being ripped off of his body before he was put back together just so the devil could start over. Every time he heard Lucifer's name the memories threatened to overwhelm him, so it was understandable that he was not too eager to see the angel again.

Sam was startled out of his thoughts when Jody cleared her throat. They were waiting for his answer.

"Pass." He said. They had beaten the devil before, they could do it again without the help of manipulative assholes.

"I would reconsider that if I were you Mr. Winchester." Came the voice from the computer. "We have the entire facility rigged with explosives that we will not hesitate to detonate shall you refuse to comply."

"You sure know how to sweet talk a guy. We'll take our chances, thanks." With that, Sam placed a well aimed bullet into the screen, shattering it and sending pieces of glass in every direction. He was too distracted by the flying shrapnel to notice Dr. Hess pulling out her own gun. He heard two shots go off simultaneously and felt one of the bullets sink into his shoulder at the same time he saw Dr. Hess drop like a sack of potatoes.

"Son of a bitch!" Sam gasped and looked over to Jody, who was already moving.

"Sam? You okay?" She looked him over and he saw her eyes hesitate on the injury, assessing the situation. "We'll take a look at that shoulder later, but if that British bastard was telling the truth, we need to go. Now." As she was speaking every light in the facility went off, save for the low emergency lighting. They could hear the doors begin locking themselves.

Sam paused for only a second before taking off down the hall, Jody hot on his heels. "How do we get out of here? This place is like a maze!"

"Take a right up there." Jody called. Sam stumbled as he felt the rumbling of the building under his feet as the first of the explosions went off somewhere in the building. He slid around the corner and turned around just in time to see the ceiling cave in behind him.

"JODY!" Sam coughed, inhaling the debris from the crash. "Jody can you hear me?"

"Sam?" He heard faintly. "Honey, I'm okay but I can't go through this way. Keep looking for a way out. I'll be fine!"

"I'm not leaving you back there." Sam yelled back, pushing against the rubble. Sharp pain shot through his body from the bullet wound and he cried out, falling to his knees. He held his arm and focused on breathing through his nose while the pain passed.

Sam punched the floor with his good arm once the pain died down to a dull throbbing. "Dammit! Okay Jody, find a safe place to hide. I'm going to try and stop the explosions."

Sam stood up shakily and began running again as fast as his injured body could take him, wondering for the first time what happened to the other hunters. He heard another explosion coming from ahead of him. Not wanting the ceiling to collapse on him again, he turned on his heels and ran the other way.

At this point Sam was at a loss for what to do. He had no idea where the bombs were and he doubted he could stop them even if he did. He decided finding a way out was better than nothing. He ran from corridor to corridor, trying every door handle he could find, but none of them would budge. When he reached a dead end he realized he was trapped. Well and truly trapped. Panic gripped him and his chest began tightening. Memories of the cage threatened to take up space in the forefront of his mind, but he pushed them down. He had to focus.

As he was deciding on a plan of action, he started feeling dizzy from the blood loss in his arm and the blood loss, coupled with the fact that the air was now more debris than it was oxygen, caused his vision to tunnel. Sam had fainted enough times in his life to know that he was going to pass out, but he pushed through nonetheless, because that's what Winchesters do. He stumbled down the hallway the way he came, but he didn't make it far before he was knocked off his feet when the final explosion detonated and everything went black.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you guys so much for your support of the last chapter! It made me feel much better about my writing and about continuing the story! So here goes nothing.

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Dean couldn't believe it. They had won. He finally had his real mom back and Ketch was dead. Now if only his geek brother would return, the knot in his stomach would be gone and he could properly enjoy this moment. He walked back into the main room of the bunker where his mom was waiting for him.

"This- all of this- is because of me" Mary said, looking at her son in sadness.

"It's gonna be okay" Dean knew that she had heard his speech when they were inside her head. He felt bad about some of the things he said, but it was all true.

"It's not okay. Since I've been back I know that I've been distant. Cold, even. Leaving you, working with them. I was trying to make things right- just from a distance- because being here with you was too hard. Seeing what I've done to you and to Sam I-"

"Mom what you did- the deal- everything that's happened since has made us who we are. And who we are? We kick ass. We save the world."

"And Sam? I'm scared that- what if he can't forgive me?"

"Sam has been through a lot of crap in his life. More than anyone should have to endure, but he doesn't blame you. He never blamed you. He has spent his entire life wishing that he had been able to get to know you and have the relationship with you that Dad and I had. Trust me, I threw it in his face way too often that he never even knew you, and that's another layer of guilt on me, but to Sam, there's nothing to forgive. And when he gets back he will tell you as much."

Dean could see the tears in Mary's eyes. She nodded and pulled Dean into a tight hug.

"Alright," Dean finally pulled away, "let's go watch a movie or something and wait for Sammy. You have to make the popcorn, though, because my leg hurts like a bitch."

Mary laughed, "Fine, but you better pick something good."

After Mary disappeared into the kitchen Dean frowned. Something felt off. He couldn't remember if he always felt this way when Sam wasn't with him or if it was different. His Sammy radar used to be so in tune but with all the shit that has happened between them he wasn't sure if he even had a Sammy radar anymore. Sure, he loves his brother and always will, but Dean couldn't help but feel a distance between them. Looking back, he wasn't sure if it started with the demon blood or even sooner. Maybe it started when Sam went off to Stanford. Either way, Dean shook it off and settled into the couch.

Dean was flipping through channels when he saw an explosion on the news. He paused. "Damn, I hope nobody was in there." Dean whispered.

Mary walked in at that moment. "What happened?" She asked.

"No idea, looks like some warehouse explosion." Dean turned up the volume to hear what they were saying.

"No information has been released on what caused the explosion, but firefighters are working on getting it under control. Officials say that it was an abandoned warehouse so luckily nobody was inside." Dean let out the breath he was holding. He shook his head and was about to change the channel when the shot switched to an aerial view and he could see the building in its entirety. More specifically, he could see his Baby parked off to the side of the building.

Dean forgot how to breathe. He heaved and threw up over the side of the couch. His blood was pumping through his ears so loudly it took him a few seconds to realize his mom was speaking. He tried to focus on her face and realized that he was hyperventilating.

Suddenly there were hands on his face and someone was telling him to breathe slower and to hold his breath and to calm down. Eventually his head cleared enough to recognize the hands and voice as belonging to his mother. He looked around and saw that he was standing. When did he stand up?

"You want to tell me what the hell is going on? Are you okay?" Mary's voice was laced with concern and her hands were roaming all over his face, trying to see where he was hurt.

"We have to go." Dean started limping towards the stairs when Mary's hands stopped him.

"Not until you talk to me."

"It's Sam, Mom. That building was the British Men of Letters headquarters. Sammy was in the explosion."

Mary's face drained of all color and she was up the stairs before Dean even noticed she had moved. Mary grabbed the keys to one of the cars and had it started before Dean made it to the garage.

* * *

Dean and Mary made it to the building in record time. The fire seemed to have been put out, as Dean couldn't see any fire trucks around, but there were plenty of police cars. The building looked more like a pile of rubble than a building, but some of the structure was still intact.

They parked next to the Impala, much to Dean's dismay. He was hoping it wouldn't be here anymore, indicating Sam had gotten out.

Dean jumped out of the car and ran to the building, ignoring the pain in his leg, but was stopped by police blocking off the area.

"Excuse me sir, but I can't let you through here."

"Have you found him? Is my brother okay?"

"Sir, there is nobody inside. It's an abandoned building."

"Did anyone go in and check?" The cops looked at each other and shrugged. "Are you fucking kidding me? My baby brother is in there and I will get him out whether you like it or not." Dean tried to push past them, but was met by resistance he couldn't fight. After shooting one last dirty look at the cops, he jogged back to the car.

"We have to find another way in. The police are everywhere."

"I have an idea. Stay here for now. You'll know when to go in." Mary disappeared around the side of the building and Dean waited. He looked at the building and tried to imagine what Sam must be going through. Was he even still alive? An explosion like that was unlikely to leave survivors. He wondered about Jody and the other hunters. Did anyone make it out?

Dean heard commotion to his right and saw the cops running in that direction, leaving a path to the building clear. "Way to go Mom," Dean whispered before taking off into the building.

Dean shoved aside a large pile of rubble that he assumed was once the front door. Inside the building he was surprised to find the structure near the entrance was largely intact.

As he dug his way deeper into the rubble he became less and less optimistic about finding any survivors.

"Sam?" He called, lifting up a fallen beam to get through the corridor. "Sammy?"

A couple more turns down hallways revealed that the main explosion occurred at the center of the building. The deeper Dean went, the less recognizable the structure was until he was no longer in a building but rather standing on top of what was left of one.

Dean was scanning the rubble carefully when his eyes caught a hand sticking out of the rubble.

"Sam?" Dean yelled, rushing over and shoving all the debris out of the way. It didn't take long for Dean to identify the hand as belonging to a female. So not Sammy. It took even less time for Dean to realize that the woman was dead. He did a once over to make sure it was not Jody.

Relieved, Dean left the body and went back towards the outskirts of the blast, hoping Sam would have been at least trying to leave before the bombs went off.

He made it back to where the structure was more intact and began following the hallways Sam might have taken to escape. He had just turned a corner when he ran into something hard and breathing.

"Jody?"


	3. Chapter 3

Dean had never been happier to see the Sheriff than he was at that moment.

"Dean? Wow kid it took you long enough!"

"Jody are you okay? What happened? Where's Sam?" Dean looked her up and down but with all the soot and debris covering her it was impossible to assess her injuries. He did notice that she was favoring her right leg.

"Alright, let's slow down sweetie." Jody bent over into a coughing fit. Dean rubbed her back like he used to do for Sam and when she was done she straightened up and looked very somber. "I have no idea where Sam is. We got separated in the first blast. When it went off a piece of shrapnel landed in my damn leg, which has been a pain in my ass, but other than that I am perfectly fine."

"Besides the smoke inhalation, you mean?"

"Besides the smoke inhalation." She agreed, smiling. "Luckily, when Sam told me to hide I was able to find a door that was still open, which led to a bomb shelter in the basement. What are the chances of that, huh?"

"Any chance my accident prone brother happened upon that same shelter without you knowing?" Jody smirked at him before falling into another coughing fit. "Didn't think so. Come on, let's get you outside and call an ambulance. I'll come back in for Sam."

"No way, I'm staying right here with you. Only I know where we got separated. It's your best bet of finding your brother."

Dean knew she was right and hated it. It was such a large facility that it would take hours to look through it all and he was not convinced Sam had that kind of time. Jody was his only chance of finding his brother alive. And he _was_ going to find him alive. He had lost Sam far too many times already and he couldn't see anyone making any more deals with him in the near future. So his brother was okay. He had to be. And yet-

"No. Absolutely not. I can find Sam on my own. He wouldn't want you to stay in here any longer than you have to. You're injured!"

"And Sam's shot!" Dean's breath caught in his throat. Jody sighed. "He was shot in the shoulder during the fight and it didn't seem too bad, but you know how much blood is expelled from a gunshot wound. Especially when nobody is around to put pressure on it. We need to find him as soon as possible."

Dean hesitated but ultimately his concern for his brother won out over everything else. As usual. "Okay, fine, let's go. But as soon as we find him we are getting you out, regardless of the outcome."

Jody nodded and moved past him.

"We got separated over here." Jody led him back towards the worst of the damage. "I went this way so he would've gone-" she turned in a circle until she found what she was looking for "that way."

Dean followed Jody cautiously, keeping an eye out for Sam or any of the other hunters.

"Where is everyone else? Walt and Roy and them?"

Jody shrugged. "I'm assuming many of them didn't make it. They could have also left before the explosion. Haven't seen them since the fighting began."

Dean nodded and continued on in silence. He could hear Jody's labored breathing and thought that Sam would kill him if he knew that he was allowing her to stay in the wreckage this long. But he also never would have taken this route if he was by himself.

"Okay, the exit would have been this way." Jody pointed straight ahead. "But right before the explosions started they sealed all the doors, so he probably would've been forced to go the opposite direction." She turned around and walked backwards.

Dean couldn't help but think about Sam being in here when all the doors were sealed with no way out. Ever since the cage his brother has had a hard time in enclosed spaces so he couldn't imagine how hard that would have been on him.

They were just maneuvering past some large debris when Dean heard a moan.

"Jody stop."

"What is it? We should-"

"Shh, I think I hear something."

Jody immediately shut her mouth and began searching.

"Sam?" Dean called. "If you can hear me please say something."

They listened. Nothing.

"I know you're here somewhere. I need you to make a noise, man."

After a few more seconds of silence they heard it.

"Dee?" It was faint, but unmistakably Sammy. Dean let out a breath of relief at hearing his brother's voice. He had been preparing himself for the worst.

The voice came from below them. From under the rubble they were currently climbing over. Dean and Jody scrambled off and spotted Sam immediately.

"Oh my god! Sam!" Jody couldn't hide her shock at the condition they found Sam in. Dean wasn't faring much better. It looked like an entire beam from the structure of the building fell on him. It was pinning his whole chest and torso down. Dean could see blood trailing all the way down Sam's free arm, presumably from the gunshot wound, but there were burns covering his body so it was hard to tell what was the most pressing injury. Then he noticed the blood dribbling down his chin, and Dean decided that was the thing that concerned him the most.

Dean whistled. "Wow, Sammy, looks like you've gotten yourself in quite the predicament here." He hoped Sam couldn't hear the nervousness in his voice.

Sam smiled. "Started to- to think that you w-weren't c-coming."

"I'm always here to save the day! I'm Batman, remember?" Dean scrutinized the beam. "Okay kid, I'm going to try and lift this off of you."

Dean leaned in to pick it up when he heard Sam and Jody yell "No!" in unison. He looked at each of them in turn, confused.

"It's got me p-pinned down real t-tight." Sam managed.

"Yeah man, I know. That's why I want to get it off of you." Sam shook his head. Dean wasn't getting it so he looked to Jody.

"The beam is currently crushing Sam's chest, most likely causing internal bleeding. Right now the beam seems to be keeping him stable, but moving it and removing the pressure would most likely kill him faster."

Dean's chest tightened at the seriousness of the situation. "Okay, so what should we do? We have to get him out sometime!"

"I think our best bet is to get the ambulance and fire trucks here before we do anything else so that as soon as they remove the beam Sam can be taken to the hospital. We have to be smart about this."

Dean nodded and pulled out his phone.

"Shit!"

There was no service. Jody pulled out her phone to find the same result.

"We are going to have to leave to find signal."

"I am not leaving Sam alone, Jody. No way."

Jody nodded. "I know the way out. I'll leave and call for help."

Dean felt uneasy about letting Jody navigate the wreckage on her own, but he knew that if anyone could do it, Jody could.

"Alright, but please hurry."

Jody squeezed Dean's shoulder gently. "He's going to make it, Dean."

He hoped so.

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Thanks for reading everyone! Let me know what you think :)


	4. Chapter 4

Dean grunted as he lowered himself down next to his brother. The adrenaline was wearing off and he could feel his leg throbbing.

"Shit man, I f-forgot about your l-leg. You okay?"

Of course Sam noticed Dean's pain. He always did. Dean looked at his brother incredulously.

"I'm not the one stuck under the freaking Hulk of metal beams." Dean huffed out a laugh and shook his head. "I can't believe you are even thinking about me right now."

"If the r-roles were r-reversed, you would be d-doing the s-same." Sam coughed violently, expelling more blood from his mouth.

Dean cursed and leaned over to wipe the blood from his brother's chin.

"Honestly Sammy, how do you feel right now? What hurts?"

"Everything." Sam's voice was getting weaker but Dean could tell he was trying to hide it. "I c-can't even t-tell where I'm h-hurt because it just hurts everywhere."

Dean nodded somberly. Jody better get there soon.

"Okay Sammy, we are going to get you some help, okay? Jody is on her way. But in the meantime, I'm going to need you to stay awake for me. You know the drill."

And Sam did. Stay awake and keep talking. The one thing they have had more than enough experience in being on both the giving and receiving end of. But right now Sam was struggling to take every breath and speaking was the last thing he wanted to do. He closed his eyes to let his tears try and get rid of some of the soot that was causing them to burn.

"Hey hey hey." Dean tapped Sam's cheek. "I literally just told you not to close your eyes."

Sam weakly shook his head.

"What?"

"Didn't- didn't tell me not to close my eyes." Sam took a shaky breath. "Told m-me to stay awake. I am awake."

Dean smirked. "Smart ass. But I still want to see those chocolate browns of yours. Best way for me to keep tabs on your level of consciousness."

Sam pried his eyes back open and Dean could see how red they were. He knew they must burn like hell, but he had no choice. Sam had to keep them open.

"Remember when we were little and Dad used to make us go on concussion duty when one of us was hurt? And we would have to wake the concussed one up every three hours?"

Sam smiled and nodded sluggishly.

"I was always so terrified that one of the times you wouldn't wake up that I never slept. Not one wink. I sometimes woke you up after only 30 minutes because I convinced myself that your sleep was different that time and freaked out." Dean shook his head. "I don't know what happened to that protective big brother. I've failed my main job over and over again."

"Dean," Sam took a shuddering breath. "none of that is on you. You went to hell to s-save me. It's not your fault that you g-got stuck playing m-mom to the most accident prone p-person on the planet. It doesn't help that I've made really dumb decisions."

Dean smiled. "You are quite the disaster magnet." The smile vanished. "But the old me would have never let you go into battle without me. This is on me."

"What-" Sam coughed up more blood. "What would you have done if you were here? We didn't know t-there were b-bombs. You would've just been b-blown up too." Sam strained his neck to look Dean straight in the eyes. "I'm proud to call you my brother. We've accomplished a lot, haven't we?"

With that, Sam started wheezing. Dean's heart rate picked up and he started searching his brother's face.

"Sam? What's wrong?"

"Can't- breathe." He choked.

"Okay, I'm not waiting any longer. I'm pulling this damn thing off of you."

"No- Jody- almost- here." Sam breathed out every word like the air was being stolen from his lungs. His face was turning an even more alarming shade of pale and Dean thought he could see a blue tinge starting to take up residency in his brother's lips.

"Come on, Sam you need to help me out. I don't know what to do here, man." Dean furiously wiped away the tears stinging in his eyes. Sammy was the crier, not him.

But Sam had closed his eyes and no matter how much begging Dean did he would not reopen them. Dean stood up and ran his hands through his hair. His first thought was to call Cas, but they had been trying ever since he took off with Kelly and he wasn't optimistic of his chances of a response. Not to mention the whole lack of signal thing.

No, Dean was on his own and he wasn't going to sit by and watch his brother die. He couldn't do it. Not again.

Decision made, he knelt by Sam to check his pulse. After finding it there, albeit thready and erratic, he braced himself to lift the beam up. He was just starting to strain his muscles when he saw red lights flickering around him. He let go of the beam and limped to a position where he could see the ambulances in the parking lot.

Dean could tell that Jody was refusing treatment. She kept shrugging off the EMT's hands and oxygen masks and pointing in the direction of Sam and Dean. Dean let out a breath. They were gonna be okay.

He called out to the paramedics and waved his arms in the air. Once they saw his position, Dean ducked back into the building and went over to Sam.

Almost immediately Dean could sense a change in his brother. He was still before, but now it seemed almost eerie.

"Sam?" Dean called, wanting a reaction, but knowing there wouldn't be one. He could almost hear his blood pumping through his veins as he felt for a pulse.

It wasn't there.


	5. Chapter 5

Hey guys! Sorry this chapter is so short, I've been really busy but I wanted to get something out for you. Thank you so much for all of your reviews, favorites, and follows. I appreciate them all more than I can express. So here you go! Chapter 5

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Dean was shaking. No matter how many times he has gone through this it has never gotten easier. How can seeing your baby brother dying ever become easier?

"Sammy?" Dean cupped his pale face in his hands. "Don't you dare do this to me now, you hear? We have help on the way! I won't do this without you. If you go, I go too, remember? The hell with the world. The hell with Cas and Lucifer's hell child. They can figure it out on their own."

And Dean meant it. It wasn't fair that Sam didn't have a heartbeat while Dean felt like he couldn't escape his.

It wasn't fair to Dean. He knew that if he couldn't save him, Sam would get to go to heaven and Dean would be stuck on earth by himself to save humans that don't give a shit about him. He won't do it. If Sam gets to go to heaven, Dean is going to get to go too.

His musings were interrupted by a storm of paramedics and firemen rushing into the tight space.

"You need to get him out of there now he's not breathing." Dean said in a rush, stumbling in his hurry to stand.

One of the paramedics reached out to steady him. "Hey, you okay? Let me take a look at that leg."

Dean brushed him off. "Not until you help my brother. I'm fine I've already patched this up myself."

The paramedic shook his head. "Just like the lady outside, I should've known." He gave Dean a reassuring smile. "We'll get him out." He turned to his attention to the rest of the group and began barking orders.

Dean felt totally helpless being pushed off to the side and it took all of his will power not to charge in and get Sam out himself. The only thing allowing him to keep his position was the knowledge that they are way better equipped at handling this than he is, even if he has been patching up his brother since the first time he ever fell down and scrapped his knee.

The adrenaline was starting to wear off and Dean felt woozy from the lingering smoke. He strained to see what was happening to Sam. His legs gave way in relief when he heard the words "We've got a pulse" and Dean was sure he'd never heard a sweeter sound in his entire life. He slid to the ground and couldn't stop the tears that flowed freely down his face. He didn't have to man up when nobody was around to witness his tears.

Minutes later he heard more than saw the beam being lifted away. There was a frenzy of motion after that as Sam was tended to and strapped to a gurney. Dean stood up and stumbled after his brother, trying to get a sense of his condition. Once they cleared the building he wasted no time falling into an unsteady rhythm next to the gurney. He already had enough time away from his brother for his liking.

Dean looked down at Sam for the first time since he was freed. He could tell that his skin was extremely pale, but it was hard to see through all of the blood and soot covering his body. The burns were worse than Dean originally thought and he knew that his condition was still very serious, but Sam had an oxygen mask on that was getting foggy in sporadic bursts and Dean thought that he might kiss the paramedics.

Mary came rushing over. In his worry for Sam, Dean had forgotten all about his mother.

"Oh thank god you found him! Is he okay?" She looked at her youngest baby and gasped, tears forming in her eyes.

"Mom take the Impala to the hospital. Sam would've left the keys above one of the tires. I'll explain everything when we get there."

Mary nodded, composing herself.

They made it to the ambulance and Sam was loaded into it. Dean made to follow suit, but was stopped by a frazzled looking paramedic.

"You have to sit up front." He pointed to the passenger side of the ambulance.

Dean opened his mouth to argue, but one look at the paramedics rushing around the back of the ambulance and he changed his mind, scrambling into the front seat and yelling at the driver to hurry up.

He looked around and noticed Jody in the back of another ambulance. They made eye contact and she nodded at him, no doubt wanting him to focus on Sam. They would meet at the hospital.

As they peeled out of the warehouse parking lot Dean wondered how his perfect day ended up going so wrong.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural

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The drive to the hospital was the longest 10 minutes of Dean's life. He couldn't see what was happening to his brother, but thanks to a little opening between the front and back of the ambulance he could hear everything. He heard all of the movements of the paramedics. Heard all of their loud orders. The requests for medications and equipment Dean didn't understand.

He heard the first time Sam's heart stopped. Heard the hum of electricity going into the defibrillator and the subsequent discharges into his brother's body.

The second time Sam's heart stopped, Dean didn't want to listen anymore. He flinched at every sound the defibrillator made. He felt smothered by the urgent voices and the clanging of instruments.

Dean ran his hands through his hair and furiously wiped a tear from his cheek. He wanted to shut his ears and ignore what was going on in the back, but then he wouldn't of heard the sweet sound of his brother's heart restarting or the voices behind him becoming calmer and more sure of themselves.

Dean felt as if he had been in that ambulance for hours when they finally pulled into the emergency bay. He was out of the car and to the back of the ambulance before the doors were even open. He only managed to catch a glimpse of his brother before he was being rolled away and Dean was receiving vague reports of "surgery" and "critical condition" from passing medics.

When he lost sight of Sam, Dean just stood in the doorway, unable to move. He knew he should be doing something, but he couldn't remember _what_. His legs turned to jelly and he probably would've passed out if a nurse wasn't there, guiding him into a chair. She disappeared and he didn't know how long it was until she returned with a bottle of water and some crackers, telling him to eat and drink the water slowly.

He did as he was told on autopilot. Someone was asking him questions about Sam and about what happened and how he knew his brother was there. Dean wasn't sure if he was answering the questions, but the nurse only looked sympathetic, not frustrated, so he guessed he was giving some sort of response. He paused at the last question, something finally washing away the fog in his brain.

 _How did you know where to find your brother?_

Dean couldn't figure out how to express to her that he didn't know, but he should have. He should have just _known_ where Sam was. That's what big brothers do. But he had no idea Sam was even in danger until he saw the Impala on the television. And he would have never found his brother in the wreckage without Jody's knowledge of the building and the direction Sam went.

Today, Dean failed his brother.

At least that's what he's telling himself. It's easier to believe that this was a one time screw up, albeit a big one, than it was to face his fear that this was simply who the years of hunting and death had turned him into. If he was now a man who put the hunt before the safety of his family, how was he any better than John Winchester?

The nurse gave Dean a sad smile and patted his knee. She stood up and disappeared back behind the front desk with promises of updates as soon as she had any.

It may have been minutes or hours before Dean felt hands on his back, rubbing circles comfortingly. He looked up and locked eyes with his mother.

Mary looked frazzled and concerned, and Dean thought the concern seemed directed towards him.

"Any news?"

Dean shook his head.

"Are you going to tell me what happened?"

A small nod. Dean cleared his throat and explained everything that transpired between the last time he saw Mary and now. His voice was hoarse and small, very unlike his usual confident, commanding tone.

By the end of the story, Dean was fighting his tears. He was not going to break down in front of his mother.

"Oh, honey." Mary took Dean into her arms. The reassuring tone and comforting touch forced Dean to choke out a sob, not able to hold back any more. He cried for Sam, who was fighting for his life right at that moment. He cried for Cas and Kelly and all that still had to be done. He cried for a sense of peace that he would never feel while on this earth. But most of all, he cried for the brother he used to be, the one who would have never let this happen.

When he was done, Dean was ashamed of the way he let his guard down in front of a, for all intents and purposes, total stranger. He schooled his features, wiped his tears, and set his jaw. Mary's eyes were glistening with unshed tears now and Dean couldn't help but feel a little angry. What right did she have being sad when it was her who invited the Brits in? She hardly even knew Sam. She hadn't raised him and when she finally did return, she left again right after they found the youngest Winchester. She can't just choose when she wants to care about her kids.

Dean's thoughts were interrupted by a commotion coming from down the hall.

"I think I know my own body, sir. I'm fine. I have more important matters to deal with right now! It's just some minor scrapes."

Dean smiled at the voice and, suddenly, Jody was rounding the corner, looking annoyed. Her eyes immediately found Dean's and her angry facial expression melted away and a concerned, caring one took its place. She brushed off the doctor and made her way as quickly as possible over to Dean and Mary. Her leg was wrapped in gauze and she was still in a hospital gown.

"They wouldn't let me go!" She huffed, taking a seat next to Dean. "My leg is taken care of and they have been giving me oxygen since I sent them in to find you. I'm fine!"

Dean smirked at her. "You couldn't at least grab some clothes while you were storming out of your room?" He could see the moment the doctor gave up on getting his charge to remain in bed and disappeared to fetch paperwork instead.

"They are covered in dirt and reek of smoke! I'd rather wear this." Jody pulled Dean into a hug. "How's Sam?"

Dean squeezed her back, taking comfort in her embrace before pulling away. He shrugged. "No idea. I haven't heard anything since they brought him into surgery." He shivered, remembering how Sam's heart kept stopping in the ambulance.

"Well, no news is good news, right?" Mary asked, hoping to keep spirits as high as possible. This was setting up to be a long night.

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Thank you all for your continued support for this story! Only one more chapter to go.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural

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It was hours later when a doctor finally came for them. By that time, Jody had signed her discharge papers and found real clothes to wear. Mary had fallen asleep, but Dean was too nervous to even attempt to get some shut eye.

"Family of Sam Stenton?"

Dean recognized the name from their fake insurance card and jumped up immediately, feeling dizzy from the head rush.

"I'm his brother. How is he?"

"Sam sustained serious injuries in the explosion. He came in with multiple lacerations and burns, the worst of which reached third degree level, and massive internal bleeding. The beam that had him pinned down broke a few ribs and punctured his lung. The punctured lung, coupled with the bleeding into his lungs, were the cause of his inability to breathe."

Dean nodded, fighting the urge to vomit right then and there.

"The surgery went well and we managed to stabilize him. He is in the ICU now and should be just fine."

Dean blew out the breath he was holding. He didn't want to ask how close they had come to losing his little brother in surgery, but he could guess. His stomach unknotted for the first time since he saw the news and as he turned to his mom and Jody, a smile spread across his face.

Mary and Jody were just as thrilled to hear the news and both reached out to embrace Dean at the same time. He allowed himself to be brought in for a group hug and relished in the thought that instead of having one mom alive, he actually had two. And a living little brother to boot.

The doctor led the three of them to Sam's room.

"Sam's health is still very fragile at the moment so I would like to restrict the visits to one family member at a time if that's alright?"

The three of them nodded and Dean stepped forward to enter. No discussions were needed to decide who would be first. The doctor opened the door and nodded for him to go in.

To say that Dean was shocked by the condition of his baby brother would be an understatement. He had seen Sam in the hospital dozens of times, but never with this many wires and tubes attached to him. It didn't even look like he was really alive. His skin almost blended in with the sheets he was laying on and his eyes were shrunken. Bandages covered most of his body.

"Oh Sammy." Dean whispered.

"I know it can be frightening seeing him like this, but every tube is helping to save his life. One is breathing for him while his lungs are recovering, a few are draining any excess internal bleeding, and one is ensuring his urine has a place to go. I assure you, it looks worse than it is."

Dean swallowed and moved closer to his brother, gently touching his cheek.

"That's good, because I'm not sure it could be worse than it looks."

The doctor smiled slightly and patted Dean's shoulder before leaving them alone.

Dean sunk into the chair next to Sam's bed and picked up his hand, taking comfort in the warmth of it. He didn't feel the need to say anything, just being near him was enough.

It was there, reassured by his brother's presence, that Dean finally fell asleep.

Dean woke up to light streaming into the room and nurses bustling about. He was immediately awake, feeling groggy but refreshed from his night sleep.

"My mom-?"

"Her and the other lady with her didn't want to disturb you, but they were in to see Sam and then said something about getting a hotel room for the night. I'm sure they will be back soon."

The next few days passed by in largely the same fashion. Mary and Jody were in and out of the hospital, but Dean never left. He would take a trip as far as the cafeteria when he desperately needed to eat or stretch his legs, but besides that he stayed by Sam's side. He tried to call Castiel multiple times, but the angel was not answering or calling him back, even though Dean left messages explaining Sam's situation, so he concluded that he was being purposefully ignored and gave up.

Sam was moved out of the ICU after 4 days. His new room wasn't quite as spacious, but Dean thought it seemed more cozy.

The tube was removed from his throat after the 5th day, and Dean could have sworn Sam was looking more alive every day.

On the 7th day, when Sam woke up, Dean was the only one in the room. He was reading an old Rolling Stones magazine he had found in the cafeteria and scarfing down a pudding when he heard a groan.

He was by his brother's side in an instant, not-so-gently trying to coax him back to reality.

"Come on buddy, you can do it." Dean lightly tapped his face. "I know you are awake. Let me see those peepers." When there was no change in Sam, Dean went for the low jab. "Stop being so lazy, Sammy, you've been sleeping for days. It's time to wake up." He tried his best to channel the great John Winchester.

It seemed to work. Sam groaned again and sluggishly blinked his eyes open and looked around, finally resting on Dean's face. Dean almost cried in relief.

"That's it! I was starting to think you were going to sleep the rest of your life away."

"Mdrggf" Sam said, eyes slipping shut again.

Dean could let him sleep for now. His fears had been abated.

The next time Sam woke up, he was much more coherent. The doctors were able to speak to him and assess his brain function after being deprived of oxygen for so long. Mary and Jody were there, too, and were thrilled to see Sam awake.

The burns turned out to be the worst part. His lungs and ribs would heal eventually, but some of the burns required medical interventions that were less than pleasant. Every time they changed the dressings, Sam would try his hardest to breathe through the pain and act like it didn't hurt, but when sweat started breaking out on his face and he was holding his breath more than he was releasing it, Dean knew that this treatment was agony for him and would give anything for him to not have to go through it.

Sam woke up to the noise of chewing and paper crinkling. He smiled to himself. Dean was always eating. He opened his eyes and, sure enough, Dean had managed to get someone to bring him a giant burger from a fast food joint.

"Keep eating those and it'll be you in this bed." He quipped, voice still hoarse.

Dean looked up and smirked. "At least I'd go out doing something that I loved!"

Sam rolled his eyes and chuckled. "And I was just, what? Saving every hunter's lives if I recall correctly?"

Dean immediately broke eye contact and looked down, shame flashing over his face. Sam's heart sunk.

"You're not still blaming yourself for this, are you?"

Dean looked back up. "How can I not? I willingly sent you in there with no hesitation or reservations about it."

"Because you trusted me to handle it. If you should be disappointed in anyone, it should be me. I let you down."

Dean shook his head vigorously and opened his mouth to protest but Sam cut him off.

"And it's not like you were just sitting around relaxing the whole time. You were dealing with mom! She's family too, and you saved her. You couldn't have done that if you went with us. Plus, your injury would have slowed you down, and, as I have said before, _you could not have done anything to stop what happened._ The Brits are the only people to blame and they are all dead. We did it. _We_ did it." Sam left out the information about Lucifer being back. They would have to deal with that, but one thing at a time. He couldn't dump that on Dean yet.

Dean tried to hide how much Sam's words meant to him, but Sam could always see right through him.

Dean coughed, composing himself. "Yeah, whatever. Bitch."

"Jerk."

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And that's it! I hope you all enjoyed this story. Please leave a review if you can, I love hearing your feedback! I already have some ideas for a new fanfiction so I doubt this will be the last you hear from me. Thank you for your support for this story, it means a lot :)


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